Running Princesses
by UnicornsRFluffy
Summary: Magic still lives in Storybrooke. A girl with tears that heal can cause a big problem when she won't just stay put.
1. Chapter 1

Regina was leaving the only store in Storybrooke that sold art supplies. She had new brushes, 5 different types of paint in 10 different colors, charcoal, two drawing pads, and colored pencils. It was a trip she made every month. She absolutely hated it, but it was one of those things that were completely necessary. She personally could not understand what drove a person to want to paint things or draw pictures. It seemed dirty and messy and the pictures never looked real. No, art was a waste of time that she could not get behind, and yet here she was buying hundreds of dollars worth of the stuff every month. She was actually surprised that no one had ever questioned her before, but then the only three people that had ever questioned her had never seen her buying art supplies. That is they hadn't until just now.

The last person she wanted to see was leaning heavily on his cane and moving toward her. Quickly she came up with hundreds of stories she could tell him. He would see through every single one but maybe, just maybe he wouldn't figure out the truth.

"Regina."

"Mr. Gold." Pleasantries were unnecessary between them. Their long standing hatred had resurfaced and the tolerance they kept for one another was barely concealed and only for the sake of keeping the towns people unaware.

"That's an awful lot of paint you have there. I had no idea you were an artist." Suspicion and sarcasm dripped off the words. Regina wondered if he actually did know what she was doing.

"They are for Henry." It was so transparent that no one would have believed it.

"That's funny; it seems to me that Henry's art hasn't progressed past crayon. I doubt even a smart 10 year-old boy like him grasps the complexities of using watercolors. Are you sure you aren't buying them for someone else? I know there is a young artist that lives right inside the forest."

Damn it he knew. He always knew. Regina didn't know why she tried to hide anything from him anymore. Well anything other than the girl that was in the basement of the hospital. That was a secret best kept. She decided to concede and remind him why it was so important to keep the young girl happy and away from town as much as possible.

"You are right. She is quite talented. It would be a shame to make her come to town and stop making her art for too long, don't you agree?"

"I can see why you would think that, but she is such a lively girl. She could never stay away from the people for too long. I just can't figure out why you are trying so hard to make sure she is completely happy?" He was skeptical of her intentions. He didn't know the full story. The only person besides her that did was Henry. So she just smiled to let him know that there was more to the story that he knew. A small but extremely important detail.

"It is better that she stay away from the people in this town."

"I don't know why you would think that, with the trouble that roams the forest."

He was right about that. Her little friend's "one true love" was part of the small time group of men that had been known as the Lost Boys. They were all outcasts and small time criminals. They had eventually had disbanded after their leader had fallen in love. People had loved them because they had only taken from the most privileged and given to the less fortunate. Regina believed that was worth the risk. They hadn't seen each other in 28 years, and now with Emma and her odd effect on the town it was more important than ever to keep the girl isolated.

"That group has never bothered her. She's safer there than she would be in town."

"How so? Are you afraid she would find her sister, or that she would _cry_ on her?"

How did he know? Were there really no secrets from this man? The bastard was toying with her.

"Don't look so shocked. I have seen parts of Henry's book. He does read it in the _most_ public places."

"Well I am late Mr. Gold. It was so good to see you." It was clear by the sound of her voice and the glare she gave him that she was anything but happy to have run into him.

"Bye, dearie."He did love it in when he won one of their little battles. He left with a little spring in his step.

Regina cut through the forest on a hidden path that led right to the back of the little house that sat far from any road that ran through Storybrooke. She had taken great care with this particular girl. She had never been her problem until the untimely demise of the witch that had captured her when she was just a baby. It was much later that she became a mild annoyance. Regina had no idea when she cast the spell that keeping this girl happy and away from people would become so vital. Yet here they were.

She walked up the path and knocked on the door. Normally she would hear the running of bare feet and have the door burst open in a tornado of youthful exuberance, but today she was only greeted by silence. She tried to open the door, but it was locked. The little troublemaker had finally gone into town. This time she had only lasted five weeks. Her trips were short, but were becoming more frequent. Regina set the supplies on a bench and turned on a determined heel to find the girl. She couldn't take any chances.


	2. Chapter 2

**So I totally did not even give anyone a heads up on the first chapter. My bad guys. This is a story about Rapunzel. The first few chapters will be a set up so it's going a little slow. Basically Rapunzel will play both an important role in Fairy Tale World and The Real World. I love any feedback you have. I do love Disney's Tangled so I will be pulling from there for some things that you will see. **

**I do not own anything at all. Except this computer.**

Ruby looked up from the cup of coffee she was pouring when she heard the bell on the door to the dinner ring. She smiled when she realized it was Violet. She hadn't seen her in forever. The girl was practically a hermit.

"Hey Violet. I haven't seen you in a while. What brings you to town?"

"I missed your coffee Ruby." Ruby knew the words were true. She made the best coffee in town. It may have been the only coffee in town, but it was still the best. She also knew the last thing that Violet needed was coffee. She flew everywhere she went. Even now she slid into the seat directly in front of Ruby so fast that it was surprising she didn't fall off the other side. Violet smiled up at her with a toothy grin and too wide mostly green eyes. Violet was so refreshingly innocent, a perfect contrast to Ruby. Ruby preferred her red hot pants and tight shirts and Violet wore a loose t-shirt in a soft blue and worn out old jeans.

"Here you go. One cup of coffee for the town recluse." She smiled as she slid the cup toward the girl's waiting hands.

"Thanks. I am not a recluse. I just don't have a lot of reasons to come to town. I paint a lot and I have Sunshine." Sunshine was Violet's very black cat.

"Vi we both know that a cat is not good company. She is surly and sleeps all the time." The truth was the cat loved Violet but hated Ruby. Ruby had always been more of a dog person.

"You and Sunshine just need to get over your aversion to each other. Have you seen the Mayor today? I don't want to miss her before I leave."

"Are you gonna cut out right after one cup of coffee?" Ruby knew her visits were short but they usually lasted longer than 30 minutes.

"No, I need to go to the pawn shop and the book store. I also thought I might stop by and see Ashley for a minute. I haven't seen the baby." Ashley and Ruby had both visited Violet occasionally to get away from town, but Ashley hadn't had the chance since Alexandra was born.

"She would like that. Hey look it's the new sheriff and Mary Margret. You haven't met Emma yet. Hey Sheriff!"

Emma looked over, she was puzzled by Ruby's abrupt greeting and then she noticed the girl sitting in front of her. She had never seen her before. That was weird in a place like Storybrooke. She may not know all the names but she knew all the faces. The girl was small and slight. Her hair hung around her shoulders and was dark brown. Only a few shades lighter than black. She had large eyes that looked like a kind of blue green. She hummed with energy and it was clear she wasn't a fan of sitting still. She looked familiar and Emma knew she had never seen her before.

"Hey Ruby. Who's your new friend?" Emma walked up to the girls with Mary Margaret in tow.

"This is Violet. She lives inside the forest. She paints a lot of pictures, and cure the most vial of headaches." Ruby was short. She knew Emma liked to get to the point. Before Emma could greet the girl Mary Margaret burst in.

"Hey Violet! How's Sunshine?" She was beaming at the girl in true Mary Margaret fashion.

"She's good. I did drop some paint on her yesterday. She was less than pleased. It took me an hour to get it out of her fur. Did you get those paintings I sent to you?"

"I did they were lovely. Thank you so much."

"Wait you painted those? They were amazing." Emma could not believe this was were the pictures had come from. There was so much color and life in them. Just when the conversation started to flow the four girls were interrupted by a very agitated voice.

"Violet! There you are." Regina looked livid.

"Oh no, did I miss you? Regina I didn't think you would leave so early. I just wanted to come say hi to Ashley and get a cup off coffee. I am so sorry. I should have left a note. Did you wait long?" The words came out in a kind of ramble. It was clear Violet felt awful.

"It's okay. Maybe you could come with me and we could take care of it." Regina was now masking her anger under a layer of sugary sweetness. She needed to get the girl away from here immediately. She could only hope that Emma was not interested in digging deeper into her past. But with her luck today anything was possible.

"Of course. Ruby, can you tell Ashley I said hello. It was good to see you Mary Margaret and to meet you Sheriff." Violet threw down some money and dashed out the door with the Mayor.

"What was that all about?" Emma asked Ruby. Mary Margaret just stared after them with a concerned look on her face.

"Every artist has a patron. The Mayor is Violet's"

"Well that just sucks."

"I know."

Rapunzel was staring at the ocean once again. What she wouldn't give for one day out there to sail to unknown places. The people she could meet. The adventures she could have. The paintings and art that might be out there. She wouldn't go out there of course. She had to protect herself. She couldn't let the magic of her hair be discovered. People would use it for all the wrong reasons. She could not let that happen. She would stay here and make sure that the world would never be exposed to the terrible price that the magic in her hair would cost them. She would be content to sit here in her tower and dream. Dream and paint and read and cook. Those were the simple things that she would be able to enjoy. It was for the best. Still...

She wondered what is would be like to feel the grass or to touch the ocean. She wondered what kind of games that children played in the large cities, and what it would be like to ride a horse. There were so many things that she wondered about. One of the bigger ones she didn't think about too often. Some times she couldn't help it. It started when she had accidentally received a romantic story book in a delivery with some painting supplies and some other books. She had been curious and read it. It was a love story about a young prince and a fair maiden. It was a forbidden love and the story was beautiful. So sometimes she wondered what it would be like to be kissed or to fall in love. It sounded wonderful.

But there was one thing that she stopped her self from wondering about. All the lives she could save. She knew about the Ogre wars and the battles being fought in other kingdoms. Mother Gothel told her about them when she visited. Rapunzel had briefly wondered if there was a way for her to stop the death and save lives if she took them her hair. She could heal their wounds and sooth their pains. She had forbidden herself to ever wonder about it, because she knew it would be a terrible idea and yet she couldn't stand the thought of people dying. It hurt too much to wonder about this possibility.

Although she didn't let herself wonder about it, she threw herself into learning about healing. She knew that it was doubtful she would ever get to use her skills but she learned everything she could about it anyway. What herbs did what, how to stitch a wound that left only minor scaring, how to make a tourniquet, all the valuable skills that may let her save someone without the use of her hair. She was a fast learner and had even made a little book for her medical kit that she kept hidden. Rapunzel wanted to save lives and she hoped one day she would be more help then threat to the people in need.

Today however she was taking a break to look out over the trees at the ocean. Today her impossible dream was taking the back seat to her imagination. Her 18th birthday was fast approaching and she had yet to figure out what she wanted to ask for. Leaving the tower was absolutely forbidden, but she had all the paint and books she needed. So she was imagining what it would be like to ask to go to the royal wedding of Prince James. She heard his bride was the most beautiful woman in all of the land. She had also heard that the Princess had been an outlaw. How exciting her life must have been!

Just as Rapunzel was thinking how exciting it must have been to live as an outlaw she saw some movement in undergrowth near the trees. She stood up and leaned as far out the window as she dared without endangering her safety. Midnight her inquisitive white cat jumped up on the window sill just in time to see a strange man creep through the foliage.

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><p><strong>How scary! Or maybe not. Please leave a review if you are interested in reading more of this story. :)<strong>


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